How We Met: A Percabeth Story
by Sally Stevens
Summary: While walking down the streets of New York, Annabeth Chase thinks of ways of murdering Nico. But her miserable day turns fortunate when she spots Nico. Or does she? Percabeth AU. My first story, hope you like it! :)
1. Chapter 1

**Summary** : ** _While walking down the streets of New York, Annabeth Chase thinks of ways of murdering Nico. But her miserable day turns fortunate when she spots Nico. Or does she?_**

 ** _Hey guys, it's a little something I wrote. Hope you like it! :)_**

 **Annabeth's POV:**

I walked down the street, fuming at my luck and ignorant of the rush of people around me. I might have snapped at three people since morning and to clear it up, I've been awake for only an hour. I glared at another girl, who gave me a particularly hard (if accidental) shove, and I continued striding down the street to the nearest convenience store, but not before I shouted a "Watch it!" at the girl and she scrambled away.

This morning must be the worst one in my life.

Last night, I vaguely remember my gay best friend walking through my apartment door at around 2 A.M. He was drunk as hell, and though I was sleepy, I remember Nico being accompanied by another person. It was a normal occurrence, Nico brought over guys to my flat because he couldn't take them to his house (he lived with his homophobic parents) and also because I had soundproof walls and a guest room.

I also recall Nico giggling as he hovered over me. At that time, I had thought drunk Nico was checking if I was asleep but this morning I realized he had been giggling for a completely different reason.

Nico di Angelo had dyed my hair PINK.

To add mischief on top of that, Nico had emptied out the bottle of shampoo to soak his underwear and make it fragrant. That idiot, I was going to murder him!

Thankfully though, my hair was not completely pink. My blond hair had been highlighted with a glitter pink colour, and if I was girly enough, I would have shrieked in joy and kept complimenting myself over the highlights. Only problem, I wasn't girly enough.

I wanted the pink out of my hair before it dried all too well and became stubborn to be removed. I'd rather be bald than wear clumsy pink highlights!

On top of all this, it was snowing in New York. And my feet were tired of trudging through the thick layer of snow. It was like all the Gods were trying to make this day miserable for me!

With a shiver, I pulled my coat tighter around me.

With murderous thoughts (dedicated to dear sweet Nico), I looked up to see if I had yet reached the store. I was about to breath a sigh of relief upon seeing the store when I spotted someone familiar.

He was about twenty feet away from me, and wearing a black jacket and black jeans, with a pair of black sneakers. He had his hands in his pockets, and his head was low. Taking thorough note of his built and lean body, and his a-little-too-long black hair, I gritted my teeth realizing this was Nico di Angelo. Hell, he was dressed in all black, this was definitely Nico.

So I made a run towards him, yelling "NICO! YOU ASSHOLE!". Nico paused in his tracks but didn't look back and continued walking.

THAT ASSHOLE. He heard me but didnt stop! "Oh, you're so gonna pay, Death Boy", I growled and cooped up a handful of snow in my hand, and aimed at Nico's head, and threw it.

It hit him and I smirked and got two other snowballs ready and threw it simultaneously at Nico, without even looking at where I hit him. Then I looked up with a grin, to enjoy the look on Nico's face.

But what I saw shocked me.

It wasn't Nico di Angelo.

Uh-oh.


	2. Chapter 2

Hey guys, here's the Part II of the fanfiction! Thanks so much for the reviews, favorites and follows! :)

 **Summary** _ **: While walking down the streets of New York, Annabeth Chase thinks of ways of murdering Nico. But her miserable day turns fortunate when she spots Nico. Or does she?**_

 **RECAP:** _ **(Annabeth's POV:)**_ _It hit him and I smirked and got two other snowballs ready and threw it simultaneously at Nico, without even looking at where I hit him. Then I looked up with a grin, to enjoy the look on Nico's face._

 _But what I saw shocked me._

 _It wasn't Nico di Angelo._

 _Uh-oh._

 **PART II: Annabeth's POV:**

The man definitely wasn't Nico. He was not pale like Nico, but had a little tan. He had windswept black hair which looked uncombed (unlike Nico's silky falling-in-front-of-his-eyes straight hair). He didn't have a brooding expression and dark circles under his eyes like Nico has. This guy has smile lines. But the most mesmerizing thing which enchanted me was...

His eyes.

They were green. Not the common emerald green or leaf-green, but his eyes were of a sea-green colour. Like the ocean which does not like to be restrained. His eyes made me want to cuddle with him, under his warm welcoming gaze. It made me want to get lost in the sea-green and never gain my senses again.

Whoa! What was happening to me? I don't act giddy like this! I didn't even know this guy!

While I was backtracking from my (romantic?) thoughts, this guy stormed up to me and said, "Hey, you! Why the hell were you throwing snowballs at me?!" He didn't shout at me, just spoke in a frustrated tone.

"I'm sorry!", I exclaimed, "I thought you were someone else. I thought you were a friend of mine...you look exactly like him from behind."

The guy frowned at me and upon sensing my honesty, he said, "You were the one calling 'Nico'?"

"Yeah, that's who I thought you were. You are dressed in black and my friend does too", I replied, placing a lock of hair behind my ear.

His eyes followed my action and I saw his eyes widen a little.

It was then I remembered that my hair was clumsily dyed pink. Damn, this really hot guy saw my hair, he was probably going to think I'm a freak!

Instead, he stifled a laugh.

Damn, I wanted to tell him that he can laugh just so I could hear him laughing.

"What's so funny, mister?", I asked, folding my arms over my chest.

"I can bet ten dollars that a younger sibling did that to you", he said, grinning. I willed myself to not let out a dreamy sigh about how he had perfect teeth.

I made a face instead, "Uh no. A friend did this to me. Nico, actually."

"So I lose ten dollars, huh?", he made a fake pouty face.

"Uh... Not really. Nico's actually like an younger brother to me..."

The guy grinned at me and took off his beanie.

I gasped quite loudly, not quite believing what I was seeing.

His hair was PINK.

Not totally pink, of course. I had seen his black hair (which had led to me ambushing him). His hair was dyed pink as a thick line sideways in the middle of his head. It looked like a headband. A pink headband. On a guy.

Needless to say, I burst out laughing.

The guy grinned even more and said, "My six-year-old sister had dipped my hairbrush in pink paint, and kept it in my backpack. This morning, I combed my hair with that comb, not noticing my blue hairbrush was PINK. And this was the result. Percy Jackson rocking pink hair!" he laughed.

"You don't really rock that look!", I said, clutching my sides since I had been laughing so hard. Also, I took a note mentally that his name was Percy Jackson.

"I can't say that about you, though"

I don't know why but my heart fluttered, understanding what his words meant. He had meant that I look good.

I smiled and introduced myself, "I'm Annabeth. Annabeth Chase."

He grinned and shook my outstretched hand, "Percy Jackson."


	3. Chapter 3

Hey guys, here's the Part III of the fanfiction!

 **Summary** **:** ** _While walking down the streets of New York, Annabeth Chase thinks of ways of murdering Nico. But her miserable day turns fortunate when she spots Nico. Or does she?_**

 **RECAP** ** _: (Annabeth's POV:)_** _"You don't really rock that look!", I said, clutching my sides since I had been laughing so hard. Also, I took a note mentally that his name was Percy Jackson._

 _"I can't say that about you, though"_

 _I don't know why but my heart fluttered, understanding what his words meant. He said that I look good._

 _I smiled and introduced myself, "I'm Annabeth. Annabeth Chase."_

 _He grinned and shook my outstretched hand, "Percy Jackson."_

 **PART III: Annabeth's POV:**

"Remind me again, why I'm giving you a treat in Starbucks?", Percy said, faking an annoyed look.

"'Cause you lost a bet, Percy."

"But you said Nico was like a brother to you!"

"Nope. You're not backing out of this."

"Aw, I thought my pouts would get me out the deal..."

I grinned at my new friend and scooped up a spoon of my Chocolate Crossiant and placed it in my mouth. Percy grinned back at me and ate his Blueberry Scone.

We were seated in Starbucks and it was Percy's treat, since he had bet that my pink dyed hair was due to some mischief by my younger sibling. He had lost the best.

After introducing ourselves, we had chatted for a while, walking towards the convenience store (turns out Percy was out shopping for shampoo too). After our purchase, my stomach had grumbled loudly because I hadn't had breakfast. So, after a good laugh (Percy teasing me that I probably had a monster in my stomach, 'cause it was humanly impossible for one's stomach to growl so loud), I took up Percy on an offer for breakfast because he had lost the silly bet.

I took a sip of my Caramel Macchiato and said, "So Percy, you live here? I've never seen you around here before..."

Percy gulped down his drink of Caramel Frappuccino before answering, "No, actually I'm from San Francisco", he smiled, "I came to New York to celebrate Christmas with my cousin. He lives here."

That's why he has such a perfect tan, I thought, He's from San Francisco.

I had met Percy Jackson only half-an-hour ago, but I already liked him. He was such a perfect person. Not only had he charming looks, but he had a good nature. I found out he respected women (when I asked him why he hadn't yelled at me after I threw snowballs at him) and tried not to speak in a loud voice with them.

"Oh. You're living with your cousin, then?", I asked.

Percy frowned, "That's the problem. I went to his place but it was locked. Turns out no one was at home! That bastard didn't even come to receive me at the airport! And I bet he forgot to tell his dad and step-mom that I was coming to visit."

I chuckled, "That sounds exactly like Nico, my guy best friend. He did the same thing to his cousin Thalia, who came to visit him. Thalia was lucky that I met her and she crashed at my place for the night."

Percy frowned suspiciously.

"So, where did you spent the night?", I asked him, playing with the spoon.

"Uh, I stayed at a hotel. Which is why I was grumpy and combed my hair with the pink hairbrush without noticing", he paused, "Annabeth, tell me, does your friend Nico have black hair like me?"

I swallowed a large sip of my Caramel Macchiato and gave him a confused look, "Uh yes, I already told you that Nico and you look similar from behind. Why the sudden interest, Percy?"

"Is he twenty years old, black obsidian eyes, got out of his goth phase two years back and really pale?", Percy leaned forward, over the table.

I nodded with wide eyes, "Nico di Angelo".

He nodded solemnly, "My cousin".

"And Thalia Grace?"

"Another goth cousin".

"Oh"

We sipped our drinks in silence for a minute, before Percy said, "Wait, so Nico is your best friend?"

"Yeah, his mom hired me to tutor him. Then, we turned best friends. Well, he's like the brother I never had. I've known him for three years. I kinda helped him get out of his goth phase... though his fascination with black clothes never subsided", I laughed and he joined me.

"And Nico dyed your hair pink? Man, I'm proud of him!"

I narrowed my eyes at him, "You'd better not say, Percy. A six-year old did that to you! Way to be manly!"

He put up his hands, surrendering. I smirked, satisfied.

Then, he said, "But really, I should've know we were talking about the same Nico. My sister and he-"

"He and my sister", I corrected him.

"You have a sister, Annabeth?", he said, with an honest confused look.

I face-palmed, "No, Percy. I was correcting you. You were using wrong grammar."

Percy grinned like a Cheshire cat, "So you're a nerd, huh?"

"Well, I'll let you know I had a 4.0 GPA in college"

Percy snapped his fingers, "Aha! So you admit!"

I rolled my eyes at his antics and said, "You were saying something earlier?"

He looked clueless, so I supplied him, "You were saying that Nico and your sister-"

"Oh I remember now! Seriously, Annabeth, you make me forget things! It's a good thing though that you remind me also!", Percy exclaimed.

I blushed at his 'you make me forget things' comment and he continued, "What I was saying was that whenever Nico comes to San Francisco, he and my sister sit down and devise pranks to play on me. I should've known that if Pammie pranked me with pink, it would have been Nico who pranked you the same. I swear, they are closer to each other than I am with Pammie. Even though they meet once a year!"

I laughed and finished off my Chocolate Crossiant.

"By the way, are you and Nico related on your father's side or mother's?"

Percy's face darkened immediately, "Our dads were brothers." I didn't fail to notice the past tense.

I've known Percy for only an hour. But we clicked as friends immediately, almost like it was... fate. In this short span of time I've known him, he was cheerful and lively. He grinned at every snarky comment I threw his way. So I figured it must be of some importance that Percy's face turned sombre. But I didn't want to intrude.

"Oh", I looked away from him.

He then sighed loudly after a short silence and I could feel his eyes on me. But I didn't look up. After another few seconds, I was about to change the topic, so he wouldn't have to tell me something you didn't wish to. But he spoke first.

"I'm sorry, I just... I, all of a sudden, shut you down. It's hard for me to talk about", Percy was saying and I met his eyes, which was a dark green colour now, as if reflecting his mood.

"I understand, Percy. You don't have to tell me. We just met a while back. It's hard to trust someone you barely know. It's okay", I placed my hand over his on the table. Percy looked at our hands and smiled softly. What he said next left my heart beating loudly and some large butterflies fluttering in my stomach.

"It's not that. I trust you, Annabeth. Is it not strange that I feel so comfortable while talking to you? I feel so... at home, with you. It's like I've known you forever."

I must have been blushing real hard because Percy chuckled and I withdrew my hand.

"It'll be nice being friends with you, Annabeth Chase. Very nice."

A/N: There'll be one more part and then it will be finished. Did Annabeth seem OOC? This chapter was a filler, I sort of wanted to show Percabeth building up their friendship. Taking revenge on Nico will be next chapter!


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary: _While walking down the streets of New York, Annabeth Chase thinks of ways of murdering Nico. But her miserable day turns fortunate when she spots Nico. Or does she?_**

 **RECAP: _(Annabeth's POV:)_** _"It's not that. I trust you, Annabeth. Is it not strange that I feel so comfortable while talking to you? I feel so... at home, with you. It's like I've known you forever."_

 _I must have been blushing real hard because Percy chuckled and I withdrew my hand._

 _"It'll be nice being friends with you, Annabeth Chase. Very nice."_

 **PART IV: Annabeth's POV:**

"Quick Blue Powder Bleach?", I whispered.

"Check" came the reply in a whisper.

"Ion Color Brilliance Semi Permanent Neon Bright Hair Color Chartreuse?"

"That was one long sentence, wow. Check"

"Streaks'n Tips Temporary Color Highlight Spray Neon Purple?"

"Uhh... I thought we were picking Neon Orange?"

"No, Percy! I told you Nico would hate purple!" I whisper-yelled at him.

"He'd hate orange more!"

"I know Nico, he's my best friend!"

"And he's my cousin, Annabeth!"

We glared at each other in the semi-darkness.

"This isn't getting us anywhere near to prank Nico, Annabeth", he said silently.

My face twisted into a scowl, "I hate it when you act smart"

He must have grinned like an idiot because he didn't respond. I swiftly turned back towards the door and put the spare key (which I found under the door mat on the porch) into the key hole and turned it.

Upon hearing the satisfying click of the door being unlocked, I smirked and gently pushed the door open. I stepped into the foyer and glanced around to see if anyone was around. Percy tip-toed inside and softly closed the door. I pointed upwards as to signify that we needed to go upstairs. He nodded and we started towards the staircase.

Reaching Nico's room took us about ten minutes because Percy kept banging the bag in which we brought the things needed to prank Nico, against the furniture around. And then I'd chide him in whispers for a minute and we'd continue. Also Percy kept stupidly tripping over the carpet ("What kind of shoes are you wearing, Percy?!") and once he even managed to fall on top of me! Navigation was difficult, since it was dark, and I hadn't been that many times to Nico's house.

When we finally reached Nico's room, Percy pushed it open before I could tell him that it might be locked. Percy told me smugly, "Nico sleeps with his door unlocked." With a roll of my eyes, Percy stepped in front of me and peeked inside the room, the door ajar. A few seconds later, he stepped inside and motioned for me to do the same.

I flicked on my flashlight and swept the ray around the floor, looking for objects on which we might trip and make a noise which'd wake up Nico. Upon finding nothing but a pair of really old and worn-out sneakers about a foot away from each other, I almost breathed out in relief. It was a clear path- which translated to something less of an obstacle course for Percy.

Over the course of the time I've known him- three days- I discovered many things about him. He was a nice guy, with good behaviour and a polite attitude. He lives with his mother Sally and step-dad Paul in San Francisco. And of course, his litle sister is a 'nuisance' (he said it fondly). In return, I told him about myself. I told him that my family lived in Florida- my dad, my step-mother Helen and twin step-brothers Bobby and Matthew. I lived in New York because I got into NYU, and also I wanted to live an independent life, without being smothered by the overwhelming ignorance of my own father. I learned that Percy's father never married Sally and he was never involved in Percy's life until Percy turned 12. Percy told me about his earlier step-dad, who was an alcoholic and verbally abused him and his mother. It was sad to hear about his life, but he assured me that he's happy now (I'm not sure why I care so much).

Percy's father, Nico's father and Thalia's father are brothers, so that's how they're cousins. Percy told me that Nico had an elder sister Bianca who died in an accident, several years ago, and Thalia had a younger brother, from who she got seperated in a carnival and was never found again. So Percy considered himself the luckiest of his cousins, because he at least had a loving mother, and Thalia and Nico weren't lucky even in the mom department. Thalia's mother was mentally ill and she never got the love a daughter should get. Nico's mother died when Nico was six and he only discovered who his dad was when he was 10. Even then, Nico's step-mother considered him a devil spawn and never loved him. This I had witnessed several times during my friendship with Nico, and I felt bad for him. It was one of the few things that Nico and mine friendship was initially based on- ignorance of our parents.

Family history apart, Percy and I spent our time hanging out discussing how and when to take revenge on Nico. Percy and I figured that the best way to get on Nico's nerves would be to dye his hair to a bright color. It'd be the perfect revenge. And it'd give a massive kick to Nico's emo-ness and his love of the color black. We had to google a lot of stuff, because both Percy and I had never dyed our hair (intentionally, that is). And we had to make sure that Nico's parents wouldn't be home the night we'd avenge ourselves. After three days of planning, we found the perfect opening.

Mr. and Mrs. di Angelo were on a flight to Texas. And Percy coaxed Nico into going to a bar with him. This way, Nico would get drunk and then he'd sleep so soundly that even an earthquake will not wake him up. This would give us the perfect opportunity to bleach and dye Nico's hair, without any disturbance.

So here we are, Percy and I, trying to locate Nico in his room.

"Annabeth!", Percy whispered and pointed to the large bed in the center of the room. I understood what he meant to tell me when I glanced over.

Nico, in his black attire, was sprawled out on the bed, on top of the sheets, with his head hanging off the side of the bed. I wrinkled my nose in disgust when I noticed that his mouth was parted and he was drooling. Well, if he's drooling, he must be in a quite deep sleep. Perfect for our plan.

I look at Percy and with a grin, I said, "Let's get started".

 **A/N:** _I'm so sorry for not updating! I had exams in October and November, and another exam in December. I'll be having exams in January too, so I don't know when the next update will be. Another reason why I couldn't update was that I wasn't sure if I should include Will Solace in this or not. That would complicate things and I'm not sure if I have the time to complicate things. I stayed up at night to get this chapter done, so I could post it. I'm really slow at typing, and that's the biggest problem._

 _I need a beta! For proof-reading and correcting typos. PM me if anyone is interested._

 _And guys, thank you so much for the reviews! 19 reviews already, I'm honored! :) And I have something to ask: Can anyone suggest a better story title? Leave your thoughts in a review or PM me!_


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